Great Mell Fell — Local services in Hutton

From my campsite at the Quiet Site the route to Great Mell Fell takes you along the road to Green Barn where a footpath takes you across the small valley to Brownrigg farm. The fields in the middle of the valley are extremely boggy and care is needed if you want to avoid wet feet. At Brownrigg Farm a road is joined and after a very short walk up the road a track, leading off to the left is met. The track is followed until, at a gate, the footpath for Great Mell Fell is signposted. Climb over the stile and you are out onto the open fell. The walk up Great Mell Fell is far more interesting than its little brother across the valley. There is small wood at the start which is bypassed on a rocky path and then after an open grassland section another little copse of windswept almost petrified trees, is reached. These are Scots Pines apparently and Wainwright makes mention of them in his guide: "bleached skeletons of trees near the top of the fell". Not long after the pines , the summit, which is marked by a little pile of rocks is reached and like Little Mell Fell, its isolation gives it some commanding views. Although the views are good all round from the summit, the view of Blencathra is arguably the highlight. The summit has snow on it and Hall's Fell Ridge and Sharp edge, standing out in the clear winters air and Blue sky seem to be almost within touching distance. The walk down from Great Mell Fell retraces the walk up and once on the road, I follow it is for the three miles or so back to the campsite. The walk back is unremarkable but the road is quiet and does provide good views back of the days achievement to admire on the way. For more feel free to visit my website, details in bio or...

Extremely boggy in the winter make sure you have decent waterproof footwear. Nice views from the top but I'd say the views are better on the brother peak Little Mell Fell. Was a bit scary coming back down as there was a herd of wild horses and we had our two dogs with us and one of the horses blocked our pathway and then started to...

Choose a dry day to visit this fell, otherwise you will encounter wet feet in places. Small parking area near Browning Farm, for about 8-10 cars. Up through the woods and it is uphill all the way following the path, easy to follow. Climbed on a claggy day but still an...